


Before the Storm, Part II

by TerriblyRogue



Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV)
Genre: F/F, skimmons - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-05-07
Updated: 2014-05-07
Packaged: 2018-01-23 21:29:48
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 3,682
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1580192
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TerriblyRogue/pseuds/TerriblyRogue
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Coulson and his team move to take a Hydra base in hopes of getting an edge against Garrett. In the Middle of it all, Skye and Simmons deal with Ward’s lasting impact in their relationship.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Reveille

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: No characters in this story belong to me. All work and characters derived from Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.
> 
> \---
> 
>  
> 
> This is the continuation to "Before the Storm", and I apologize for having accidentally deleted that work and reposting it. I feel bad. Honest.
> 
> Let me just drop this incredibly unattractive link right here: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1580132/chapters/3355775
> 
> \---
> 
> The incredibly warm welcome you have given me has made me be 7% less distrusting of strangers.
> 
> Thank you for that, and thanks for reading.
> 
> And of course, Skimmons!

Adjusting to morning schedules after a lifetime of late breakfasts and open afternoons proved difficult for Skye. She was always looking for new ways to make herself rise in time. When she opened her eyes to the sound of sirens and profanity coming from her phone, she saw Simmons sitting on the bed, dazed and ready to run. She forgot to warn her. 

“Sorry, that’s just my alarm, go back to sleep,” Skye said, turning it off. 

“What time is it?,” Simmons said groggily.

“The alarm means 6:30 am. It also means ignore-it-for-thirty-minutes.” Skye reached for Simmons’ arm, pushing her back down with very little resistance. Simmons turned to Skye and could see she was already half asleep. She looked peaceful. 

“I’m up. I’ve never any good at segmented sleep,” Simmons said. Skye smiled, her eyes still closed.

“Well, then you can stare at me while I sleep, you creep,” Skye said jokingly.

"Unacceptable. You need to get up, we have a briefing.” 

Skye groaned and burrowed in the covers. She let a few seconds pass. Feeling Simmons’ eyes on her, she opened her own and Simmons moved closer for a kiss. She seemed not at all surprised her tactics worked. The prospects now in Skye’s mind made for a more effective method of waking than loud alarms.

She would compromise. Stay awake, but in bed for a while longer. 

-

“We owe S.H.I.E.L.D. a debt, for what it stood for. It’s not about whatever grew at its side in the shadows; we made a promise. Everything they’ve thrown at us we shouldn’t have survived. Trusted friends turning on us, leaving us destitute. They took our home and made us watch as it burned. I believe we are all in this room because we are stupid—” Coulson said looking around the room, “–stupid enough to do something right and fight back. We are agents of — Skye, what are you doing?” 

As he said it, Skye moved her hand away from Simmons’ side, both of them changing their postures to an acceptably professional one. Simmons looked like she’d been caught cheating. Fitz was staring at them, trying to solve the puzzle, and very distrusting of what he was picking up. Coulson looked expectant and slightly amused.

“Sorry, I was showing Simmons where… I’m just a little sore this morning after—“ Skye said, stopping when Simmons jumped in, trying to cover for them.

“—she’s a gym rat. She’s sore from training like a bloody muppet. I’ve told her to pace herself, but she won’t listen. Just ignore her, please.” Skye looked at Simmons. “Muppet”? she mouthed. She knew the doctor didn’t convince the crew -her looking at Simmons more incredulous every word she said hadn’t helped either-, but she hoped they were by now accustomed to Simmons rambling and wouldn’t think much of it. The whole room was silent for a few seconds, only May reacting with something other than confusion, with a simper.

“Hill, I think you can take it from here,” Coulson said. 

It would be a short briefing. Coulson and Hill suspected the large amounts of electricity consumed by the building the satellite grid pointed to, coupled with the low temperatures and relatively small crew, meant that Hydra was guarding a data center. The plan had fallen into _Keep It Simple, Stupid_ territory. Coulson, May and Skye would head to the servers and cover Skye while she gains access and backs up whatever intel Hydra wanted to keep for itself. Triplett and Hill would stay at the opposite side of the building drawing fire from the main wave of Hydra soldiers, while Fitz and Simmons manned the van and handled communications. 

“What if it’s a trap? Why would Hydra make it so easy to find them?” Triplett said.

“It wasn’t supposed to be easy, I’m just that good,” Skye replied, feigning offense and giving a quick glance in Simmons direction to see her react. She was beaming with pride. 

“What Hydra has managed to take so far has only been possible because we were caught off guard. Now that things are settling, they’re spreading thin trying to hold it,” Hill said.

“We’re prepared,” May added looking unwaveringly at Triplett.


	2. Kinetic

They hit the wall as they fell. Skye wondered why guards never seemed to notice when their numbers dwindled. May stood by Coulson’s side with her pistol drawn while he checked the bodies for their radios and security cards. “All clear,” May said as she casually moved inside the building and knocked out an unsuspecting guard making rounds.

“Trip, Hill, are you in position?” Coulson asked over the comm device.

“In position,” Hill answered and a loud thud was heard from her side, followed by a distant “Clear” from Triplett.

“Let’s move up. FitzSimmons, which way?,” Coulson said and motioned for Skye to follow as May took point.

“Hmm… The server room in the northwest side of the building looks _very_ important,” Simmons said, not quite sure of herself, talking outside her field of expertise.

“Oh, definitely,” Fitz agreed.

They got to the server room. One of the doors required a higher security clearance, something that Skye could easily get pass, but not before raising the alarm. “Crap,” Skye said. The place would soon be in lockdown, every wall light flashing red, the sound of combat boots trampling down the hall.

“Get in, get started,” Coulson commanded. Skye connected to the computers and began bypassing Hydra security and hastily downloading any file that even hinted as classified. “Hill, I think you can take it from here,” Coulson said over the comm. 

Not three seconds had passed and a blast was heard from the opposite side of the building, the ground shaking below them, quickly followed by gunfire. Coulson was surprised, eyes wide as he looked at May and said “C–4? You gave Hill C–4?” May grinned and turned her eyes back to the hall. The main horde had changed direction, but a few stragglers were still coming at them. She took the first one out before he even had time to put his finger on the trigger. 

“Contact,” May said.

Back at the van, Fitz was getting his equipment ready. Simmons continued to look over the real time security feedback Skye had set up before entering the compound. “There’s a guard about to enter the opposite side of the room,” she said, watching the screen as May acknowledged her, moving quickly and taking him out.

“Come on, Skye,” Simmons said almost whispering, worriedly. Fitz looked up from his tablet, now certain he had registered something odd about their late interactions. 

“What’s going on with you two?” he asked.

“What?” She was unprepared for this question.

“First you don’t talk to her three days and now you’re mouthing her name when you think I’m not listening?” Fitz said, smug in his perceptiveness.

“It’s– nothing. Oh, shut up, it’s hardly the time.”

Fitz narrowed his eyes. They could usually read each other with ease, their intimacy only interrupted by recent events. As embarrassed as Simmons was, she was glad Fitz had finally felt comfortable enough around her to ask the awkward questions.

“We can get some of this information out there, we can’t be Hydra’s only enemies,” Skye said, waiting for Coulson’s approval. He checked with May and nodded. 

“We’re about to get pinned down, we have to go,” Hill said. 

“I’m almost done,” Skye said, not looking away from the screen.

“Good, because I don’t think Hydra fully embraced ICERs like we did,” Coulson said, taking cover.

“All right. Bases, schedules, personnel files, I think we’ve got it,” Skye said as she stood up.

“Fitzsimmons,” Coulson said over the comm, triggering them to feed a very loud, high-pitched noise over the comms of all Hydra soldiers, causing them to lose focus for a moment. Enough time for the entire team to move out of cover, get the upper hand and get out of the building.

They were clear of the compound, leaving the remaining soldiers confused as to where their location was. Hill and Triplett were nearing behind, when a distant whistling sound stopped them on their tracks. Mike had landed in front of them. The entire team drew their pistols while Coulson and Skye put theirs away. Hill moved closer to May, causing her to spare a quick glance in her direction. 

“Just in time,” Coulson said.


	3. Quarter

Mike felt no need to move hastily, knowing that delaying action would not affect the outcome. Carrying out Garrett’s orders are not something he treasures, Skye thought. Coulson stepped forward, motioning for the team to lower their weapons. Coulson gave May a glance, and she acknowledged. The closer Coulson moved to Mike, the less aware of her actions he’d be. “Fitz,” she said over the comms.

“Mike, You don’t want to do this,” Coulson said.

"You’re right,” Mike answered, aiming his arm next to Coulson and giving him a warning shot. The calibre of the gun was enough to tear a whole in the concrete. Instinctively they all took cover in the scattered equipment cases and out of service vehicles left from the base.

“Mike! Garrett’s a sick son of a bitch, he’s never gonna stop,” Skye pleaded, hoping there was something left of him other than Deathlok. 

“She’s right,” Coulson said, looking down, pistol now drawn. “We can get Ace back to you, this doesn’t have end b–” Coulson said, as he was lifted by Mike effortlessly by the collar in his suit. Hill shot Mike, emptying what was left of her clip, causing only a momentary distraction. Triplett lead Skye, trying to get around Mike and closer to the van. May took advantage of Hill’s move and closed in -she’d faced Centipede soldiers before, and knew all she’d accomplish was to give Coulson a chance-. Coulson freed himself, taking out the modified ICER Simmons had prepared. He took the first clear shot he had.

“Huh,” Coulson said. Mike had to take a second to get over the effects of the drug, but he didn’t miss a step. May was getting back on her feet, calling Fitz’s name over the comm, her tone now urgent. 

“Ward knows how your team works. What you’d try, how to destroy you,” Mike looked at Coulson as he threw one of the cases in Skye’s direction, both her and Triplett moving out of the way, “ _I’m_ not the enemy, I’m their weapon.” 

Skye wasn’t prepared to hear Ward’s name. She imagined him briefing Garrett on every little detail and weakness about her and her team, standing with the same cool demeanor she had known, except his eyes now harbored a stranger. She could feel the sting of his betrayal anew.

"This isn’t personal, Coulson,” Mike said, getting a metallic disk out of his belt pouch.

“I know, this isn’t either,” Coulson said, as Fitz’s D.W.A.R.F. drones shot an electromagnetic pulse behind Mike’s back, shutting down his systems. Skye ran to Mike, now laying on the ground. 

“Next time, let’s open with that,” Coulson said catching his breath.

“Kids,” May said, prompting Fitz to get his drone control tablet and Simmons’ medical supplies out of the van to Mike. The rest of the group stood closer. 

“Is he alive?” Coulson asked, concerned, putting his hand on Skye’s shoulder, as she got closer to the scene, giving her an empathetic look.

“He’s still breathing, Garrett didn’t press the kill switch, but he’ll be unconscious for a while,” Simmons said, examining Mike’s vitals. 

Fitz moved in and examined Mike. The technology was very similar to S.H.I.E.L.D.’s, the architecture familiar enough to connect directly with his equipment. He found a port that would serve Coulson’s purposes and got set up. "Skye, he’s prepped,” he said, moving out of the way to let her get closer.

Skye got her laptop out, having physical access to Mike’s system gave her hope of getting an edge for once. 

"Wouldn’t it make more sense strategically to take him in, or out?” Triplett asked, close to Simmons, to avoid Skye listening. She looked at him, aware that Triplett hadn’t known the real Mike.

"He has a son,” Fitz said closer to both of them, “When Garrett has no more use for Mike— It’s best to leave him here, better chance of Garrett not knowing what we’re doing.” Simmons gave Fitz a warm smile. 

“Are you getting anything?” Hill asked after a few minutes. While Skye worked, they needed to get ready to leave. Mike wanting to capture them meant there was an extraction team on the way.

"Oh, yeah,” Skye said, now a twinkle in her eye, “Coulson.”

“Skye?,” he responded.

"I think I know where Garrett is.”


	4. Dustoff

The pulse had given the team sufficient time to put distance between them and Mike, enough for him to lose their scent. They would take an alternate route to avoid discovery of the improvised base they had set up in an abandoned building in the nearby town. It was decided that going back to Providence was too high a risk, and distancing themselves from the FBI seemed like a good notion. 

Garrett would have attempted to capture the team once, but a second move on his part that accounted for any survivors was unlikely. They had better chances blending in for a little longer. Right now, after poking the hydra, survival was their main concern.

The road was bumpy and the van crowded. All necessitating more space than was given. May was at the wheel, discussing Skye’s findings with Coulson and Hill. Releasing some of Hydra’s classified files would surely hinder them once other interested parties smelled blood.

Triplett asked Fitz about his D.W.A.R.F. drones, making him squirm every time he tried to correct Triplett, only to have him parry a second later. Simmons shook her head in response to the little performance they didn’t realize they were putting on, half entertained and half fatigued.

The adrenaline of the team wearing down, things started to settle down. Skye now looked lost, realizing she had zoned out only when she met Simmons’ eyes, looking at her with sympathy. Hearing Mike talk about Ward had made something in her regress to her previous state. No matter how clear she was in her intent, how hard she tried to focus, every second was as difficult as the one before. She was still just human, the corner of a metal case poking into her thigh, reminding her of the fact. 

Simmons moved to Skye’s side, not saying a word, and she put her hand next to Skye’s. There was a hint of fear in Simmons’ eyes. Skye could recognize it, but did not dear to ask the why. 

“You did well today. You kept yourself together throughout,” Simmons said, her voice soft enough to draw attention from the rest of the van.

“I don’t feel together,” Skye answered, and started to remove her bulletproof vest.

“You’ll get there.” Skye nodded not quite believing Simmons’ words. 

–

The diner they encountered on the way to the base would give them a moment to regroup and relax. It was an odd sight, seven individuals making no effort to look inconspicuous with blood on their faces and torn clothes. 

Skye was now seated next to Triplett, opposite them, Simmons shared a sandwich with Fitz. 

“The portions here are excessive”, Simmons had noted before ordering. 

“This is what you get when you swear off the metric system, absolute chaos,” Fitz mentioned, not really expecting anyone to hear him.

Their supper had moved along with everyone going through the motions.

Skye was beginning to feel like herself again, ordering a cup a of coffee, playing with sugar packets.

“How’s your tea?” Skye asked Simmons.

“It’s… Adequate. It’s a difficult recipe to ruin, but they managed,” Simmons answered.

“I’m sensing some snobbery,” she quipped. Simmons smiled, not quite ashamed of her higher standards.

The conversation lulled for a moment. 

“You and Mike were close?” Triplett asked. The question had been on his mind for a while.

“I sorta found and identified him before S.H.I.E.L.D. did. He’s a good man. Ace, his son, has been through enough,” Skye said, explaining as best she could without tearing up.

“Skye,” Simmons said softly, always losing composure when Skye looked unhappy, “What Mike said about Ward—”

“I can’t believe it,” Fitz said.

“It’s okay. I’m over it. Ward is a traitor and I get to see him control my friend and possibly kill a little kid in the process.”

“You can’t help how you feel,” Simmons said. This time there was slight distress in her voice. Skye knew she was sacrificing something of herself as she said it. “Ward couldn’t help it either,” she added. Fitz gazed at Jemma as she said it, soon averting eyes with the people at the table to avoid them reading him. Triplett sensed Fitz’s situation, opting to lighten the mood by stealing a spoonful of Fitz’s dessert and apologizing immediately. 

Their interaction was unnoticed by Skye. Simmons was jealous and trying to be noble about it, she reasoned. She wanted to assure Simmons, but felt no real confidence to do so. It was confusing for her as well.


	5. COP

The building was condemned, plastic bags and tape acting as windows, with the only lights coming from the tech Fitz had placed to set up a perimeter. But it was big enough and would be suitable for a night when the sleeping bags were positioned.

The team met. It had been agreed that their current state called for a decisive strike, once they rallied enough support and equipment. “Infiltration, coercion, jay-walking, from now on, what we do, we do to dismantle Hydra and step on every head that grows back,” Coulson said to the group as he dismissed them. Tomorrow Hill would use whatever pull she had left to get Skye’s files to the right hands. 

It was one of those quiet times again. Silence was heavier for Skye recently. She was seating next to the window, Coulson approaching making his steps heard. 

“You okay?” Coulson asked.

“Yeah,” she answered, lifting her gaze and giving Coulson a nod, “Nice speech.”

“I thought so.”

“How do you not give up? Lose it completely?” Skye crossed her arms, going back to her previous view of the city.

“Purpose,” he paused for a moment. “It isn’t always pretty, the decisions we make for ourselves. We become isolated because at the time it was needed,” Coulson put his hand on Skye’s shoulder, “But having you in my life makes me okay with my past,” Skye turned to Coulson, her expression softening, “So I recommend that if you find someone that does that for you, you hold on to them. That and collectibles.” Skye smiled. Coulson left her side and headed to his room.

—

Skye thought it incredible how the Bus still ranked the highest when it came to comfortability, given how small and hard the bunks were. She imagined she could look beyond the accommodations if she could get Simmons to be with her. The thought surprised her in its clarity. The nature of their relationship was now more obvious. Simmons wasn’t a replacement, nor a distraction. She was hers. It explained her terror when she distanced herself, and how many times she had consciously avoided thinking about her. How can someone like her even exist? 

Skye had waited long enough. She got up and found Simmons in the balcony upstairs. She turned as she heard Skye, both of them about to talk.

“Skye—“ Simmons said.

“Jemma—“

“You first.”

“Well, what you said at the diner—”

“I get it, Skye,” Simmons looked at her shoes, expecting this to get her through her sentence, “Ward is- important to you. You trusted him-“ 

“—I don’t want Ward.” Jemma looked up and met Skye’s eyes. She was hopeful, but her expression changed to one of guilt.

The conversation was not moving along as Skye had planned. She panicked for a moment and wondered if Simmons was only letting her down easy. 

“I lied to you,” Simmons said, scrunching up her nose.

“You _lied_ to me,” Skye said intrigued, “And I didn’t notice?” Simmons and subterfuge are not two things Skye would think to put in a sentence.

“Well, it was more of an effort to obscure the truth.”

“That’s what lying means.” Skye braced herself for what followed.

“Your blood. I’m not taking it purely for cataloguing.”

“Okay-” Skye was now a bit dazed.

“Back at the Hub,” Simmons continued, “I ran a molecular breakdown of your blood. I was trying to get a profile of your DNA. Thing is, I had nothing to compare it to. No samples in S.H.I.E.L.D.’s database were usable.”

“It’s gotta be the serum.” Skye’s demeanor was now alert. 

“Coulson is the only subject on record to go through what you did, but the Hub was under attack before I had a chance to run his blood,” Simmons took a breath and continued, “I contacted Weaver back at the Academy, but before I could get anywhere, our communication was cut short. So far, all we know for sure is that serum dissipated from your system and that, unlike Coulson, there are no side-effects that I’ve noticed.”

“What does that mean?”

“It means you’re exceptional,” Simmons takes Skye’s hand and pulls her in close. “But I already knew that.” Skye smiles, her worried face now melting to Simmons’ touch. “Don’t worry. We’ll figure it out.” 

Skye could tell that the traffic had died down in the few minutes she had stood there with Simmons. Now her breath was audible, and the lights from the city made for a fine background for Simmons’ profile. _One moment is enough_ , Skye thought, _to keep me going_. Jemma felt Skye’s eyes on her, and turned to her. She smiled.

“What?” Simmons asked.

“Nothing,” Skye answered, her tone coy. Suddenly the silence wasn’t so heavy anymore.


End file.
